


I Could Not Ask For More

by JasmineTeaLatte



Series: Where the Spirit Meets the Bones [5]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Episode: s03e16 The Southern Raiders, F/M, Fluff, Inspired by Music, Light Angst, Pining, Pining Zuko (Avatar), The Last Agni Kai (Avatar), ZK Drabble December 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-29
Updated: 2020-12-29
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:28:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28397706
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JasmineTeaLatte/pseuds/JasmineTeaLatte
Summary: She was the blood flowing through his veins, the sunlight’s rays that gave him strength, the very air he breathed. Zuko knew he was hers from that moment forevermore, and he would follow her to ends of the earth if she asked.He would live for her, burn for her, die for her, love her with every fiber of his being, and he would hope for nothing in return - and he could not ask for more.~*~*~Written for ZK Drabble December 2020, Day 28: Heavenly
Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: Where the Spirit Meets the Bones [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2071038
Comments: 6
Kudos: 46
Collections: ZK Drabble December 2020





	I Could Not Ask For More

**Author's Note:**

> Sometimes you hear a song you haven't listened to in ages, and that can be all the inspiration you need to write a oneshot. This was inspired by Edwin McCain's "I'll Be" and "I Could Not Ask For More" so buckle up, here comes pining!Zuko brought to you by cheesy fluff (thanks, Ed!)

He had never known what heaven felt like until he held Katara in his arms for the first time.

It wasn’t for long, only lasting the length of a warm embrace of a budding friendship, of forgiveness and new beginnings as the sun set behind them on Ember Island.

Zuko stood back as she reunited with Aang, inwardly scoffing as the young Avatar praised her for making the decision to forgive Yon Rha and spare his life.

It may have been the most moral option, but the prince knew deep down that Katara still harbored resentment for her mother’s murderer in her heart. Couldn’t Aang understand that some things were unforgivable?

She’d been quick to rebuff his praise, though.

 _But I didn’t forgive him_ , she declared resolutely. _I’ll never forgive him_ …

Then the unimaginable happened.

 _But I am ready to forgive you_ , she’d declared before throwing herself into Zuko’s arms.

He hadn’t actually expected to receive her amnesty, much less that show of affection. 

Yet he found himself catching her with ease, his arms slipping around her waist and his palms settling against her lower back as if they belonged there.

It felt right, he thought as he closed his eyes.

This was perfect.

 _Heavenly_.

~*~*~

The prince was not one to give in to delusions or daydreams.

He strived for lofty goals occasionally, such as searching for an Avatar who hadn’t been seen in nearly a hundred years. Still, he always believed his aspirations were within reason – most of the time.

But that was before he held Katara.

He rested his chin in the crook of her shoulder for a heartbeat or two, inhaling the sweet scent of _her_ , and all was right with the world at last.

She squeezed him gently as they hugged, and it took all of his willpower not to duck his head and press his lips to hers right there on the docks with her brother and their friends as witness.

Zuko harbored no foolish notions about the nature of this new camaraderie. Katara had forgiven him and deemed him a friend; that was already more than he deserved, least of all from her.

Yet as they embraced, their hearts beating mere inches apart, he discovered that she had completely consumed him, pulling him under like a riptide without even trying.

She was the blood flowing through his veins, the sunlight’s rays that gave him strength, the very air he breathed.

Zuko knew he was _hers_ from that moment forevermore, and he would follow her to the ends of the earth if she asked.

He would live for her, burn for her, die for her, love her with every fiber of his being, and he would hope for nothing in return – he could not ask for more.

She pulled away far too soon and stepped backwards, beaming up at him in a way that reminded him of a warm campfire on a freezing cold night, and he responded with one of his own.

All his life seemed to have led to this moment, and it was like he’d been waiting for it without even realizing it.

Enraptured, he gazed down into her ocean eyes, open and vibrant and shining, and nothing he experienced from this point onward could ever hope to compare, unless she…

But it was not meant to be in this lifetime, he thought bitterly, biting back a frown. Perhaps in the next he might be more fortunate, and he might actually deserve her love.

Then she passed him by, her hand brushing against his arm as light as a whisper as she slipped around him, and she was gone.

And so was his heart, completely and irrevocably captivated by Katara until his dying breath.

~*~*~

Zuko would fall to the earth for her, absorbing cold blue fire that incinerated his veins into ashes just to protect her, even though it nearly cost him everything in the end.

He would readily allow himself to burn alive from the inside out so long as she remained unharmed, and he would fight his way back from the dead only if she wanted him to. 

When she brought him back from the precipice of death, he found himself gazing up at her, awestruck once more, his heart revived by her delicate hands.

The prince started to thank her again once he sat up with her help.

But to his astonishment she cut him off, her soft lips crashing against his in relief, shedding happy tears that splashed down on him like rain, her arms wrapped around him to keep him upright.

Stunned, he tentatively returned her kiss, burying his fingers in her hair, and he saw paradise when he closed his eyes moments later.

He had all he’d waited for, and he could not ask for more.


End file.
